The Emerald Abyss
by SaberSwan
Summary: Kiera Trevelyan went to the conclave with the hopes of never being held prisoner again. Little did she know her whole world would change - will her opinions of Templars change as well, especially toward a certain commander? Follows inquisition plot. Rated M for angst/future smut. Please Review!
1. Chapter 1

Kiera Trevelyan was much like any other mage in the Ostwick circle, except for her extraordinary talent for learning magic, and her noble birth. Aside from these things, she studied like all of the other mages, was confined in the tower like all of the others, and regarded the Templars with an air of cautiousness like all of the others. That was until she was taught to fear the Templars.

Kiera came into her magic at a young age, being swept away from her home and family at age 8, after she accidentally froze the pond in the gardens, in the middle of summer. At the Ostwick circle, she quickly became known as the model apprentice, learning quickly and always willing to do as she was told, though not without her own personality. At the circle, she met one Desmond Halen, a boy from an elvish alienage who came into his magic about 6 months after herself. His trouble-making and otherwise polar opposite personality drew Kiera to him, and they became the best of friends, growing up together in the circle.

Kiera and Desmond were each 18 when the mage rebellion in Kirkwall happened, the prelude to an even larger revolt to come, and it created an itch in Desmond for freedom that he had never shown before. He almost constantly was daydreaming out of the tower windows, a sudden longing to explore awakened in the man. He talked with Kiera at length in private about wanting to escape the confinement of the circle tower, wanting to be free- he even suggested that they escape together, find a secluded area of Thedas and live out their lives there, poor but free. His constant imaginings of this world of freedom slowly drew Kiera in, making her remember the freedom she had before she had come into her magic, the freedom that had been taken from her because she was deemed a "danger to society". Through the years of war that followed, they each grew more and more serious about their escape plan, until finally in 9:40 Dragon, they decided to go through with the escape, having seen the terror that the Mage-Templar war had caused, the Circle officially disbanding, and Lord Seeker Lambert declaring the Nevarran Accord nullified. Despite the Ostwick circle remaining neutral in all of this, tensions were high even there, and only intensified Desmond and Kiera's desire for freedom. They soon began planning their escape, set to occur on the darkest night of the month, the cover of blackness to help their escape once they were free of the tower.

As that fateful night grew closer, Kiera grew more nervous for their escape, worrying about whether the Templars would sense their escape and pursue them immediately, and what would happen if they were caught. The First Enchantress of the Ostwick circle was like a second mother to Kiera and she was terrified what Lydia would think of her if they were caught. Despite her fear, Kiera too desired the freedom Desmond saw outside the circle and went through with their plan. As fate would have it, however, the two never set foot outside the circle. Someone had overheard their plans and turned them over to the Templars. When both Desmond and Kiera stepped out of their quarters, there were several Templars waiting for each of them.

They were unceremoniously chained and dragged down through the tower to the underground levels, where they were tossed into a cell together, still manacled, and the heavy wooden door shut behind them. Fear shone in Desmond's eyes when Kiera turned to him, and she reached for his hand in order to comfort him. They sat like that for several hours, hands cold and clammy with fear, but having each other was the most comfort they could find in the dark cell. The Templars returned hours later and took Desmond out of the cell, with no explanation, leaving Kiera sitting in the cell alone, shaking in fear for what was happening to Desmond. They were likely interrogating him about the escape attempt, how many mages were involved, who was their leader... She longed to see him returned without harm, but she knew that was not going to happen. And then the Templars would likely return to take her for interrogation, and the thought of interrogation by Templars terrified her.

When Desmond was finally tossed back into their cell, he was bruised and bloody, but instead of taking Kiera to face the same fate, they left, leaving her scared and confused. She tended to Desmond's wounds as best she could without her magic, as using it would have raised the ire of the Templars and might have gotten them both killed. Trying to understand what had happened in the interrogation, she prodded Desmond for what they'd asked him, what had happened, but he only shook his head and hung it low with his knees drawn up to his chest. She moved close as a comfort, hugging him close with her arm around his shoulders.

They waited in silent companionship for what felt like a day before their Templar jailers came back, this time dragging both of them up and leading them out of the dismal cell. They were guided through narrow stone pathways and around corners before finally being led into a small room with no windows and a single stone table in the center. What was painted on the wall, however, was what really terrified Kiera. An image of a sun was on the far wall of the room, painted in the bright red of the Chantry – the symbol of the Tranquil.

Fear brought bile to Kiera's mouth as she realized what was happening, and her mana rose within her in response, bringing a harsh response from the Templar that was holding her, his lyrium suppressing her magic to the point that she fell to her knees. Desmond cried out to her when he saw her fall, and was punched in the gut as retaliation by the Templar that held him. Desmond was pulled to the table in the center of the room and held down in order to secure him with straps that were on either side of the table. Desmond had a look about him of quiet sadness but acceptance, as if he had chosen this path, and he looked her in the eye – a look filled with such sadness and longing that Kiera's breath hitched.

"I love you, Kiera," Desmond spoke softly, looking her in the eyes before his head was strapped to the table by one of the Templars.

His confession was the last thing she heard before she was suppressed by the Templars into a state resembling unconsciousness. She desperately tried to call out to Desmond but no sound escaped her mouth, her heart breaking hearing Desmond scream in pain as consciousness fell away. She awoke as a lyrium brand was being lifted out of a brazier and the knight-commander walked toward Desmond, who was an emotionless form laying on the table. Kiera's fear rose to a fever pitch as the knight-commander lifted the brand above Desmond's head, and she screamed out his name- desperately trying to get him to look at her. She screamed until her voice left her as the knight-commander lowered the brand to Desmond's forehead, marking him forever changed. Collapsing onto the floor, she gave up all attempts to resist and felt herself being dragged unceremoniously back to her cell in the dungeon, the rite complete.

* * *

She did not remember any events of the next several days, only the overwhelming grief and the desire to end her own life. Confined in the cell she did nothing but weep, wondering when she would be next, wishing they would kill her instead. Days later, First Enchantress Lydia came into her cell, and Kiera could not bring herself to look at the woman. Shame and fear regarding their escape attempt bubbled up from deep inside her, along with a new anger that the woman must have agreed to punish Desmond with Tranquility.

"Kiera... I want you to know, I am very sorry about what happened to Desmond, and though it does not make the situation any more bearable, I would like you to know that I was not consulted in this matter, and as such the knight-commander is being relieved of his duties here. He would have made you Tranquil as well, but I discovered the truth and prevented him from doing so," Lydia looked at her with concern, her eyes shining with tears for her young apprentice.

"I wish you would have let them. I do not want to live like this... watching what they did to Desmond... I..." Kiera broke off into sobs, embracing Lydia and weeping into her shoulder.

"Come child, let us get you out of this miserable dungeon and back to your chambers," Lydia slowly moved to support Kiera and guided her up the tower stairs and back to her chambers, sitting on her bed next to her.

"I will leave you here if you wish, but know that I am here for you Kiera and that you will no longer be confined to a dismal room. You may come visit me whenever you feel able, and send for me personally if you need anything. I will see to it that the knight-commander is punished for this offense and that no other mages will suffer from his rash decision-making," with that, Lydia gently laid Kiera on the bed and left the room, shutting the door softly behind her.

At that moment, Kiera vowed to never allow a Templar to take advantage of her like that again, she would be prepared should she ever have to fight for her life again. It was also the first time she began to sense the lyrium in their cursed veins.

Almost a year later, when Kiera had just turned 25, Divine Justinia V called for the divine Conclave. It was a desperate attempt to reconcile the mages and Templars and bring them both back into the Chantry. First Enchantress Lydia asked Kiera and a few other high-ranking members of the Ostwick circle to attend the Conclave as their representatives. Kiera agreed, and this decision set into motion events that would change her, as well as Thedas itself, forever.


	2. Chapter 2

The first thing Kiera remembered after the conclave was waking up in a dungeon. Her hands were in irons that were chained to the floor, and she felt as though she had died and been brought back. Suddenly, there was a searing pain in her left hand and an eerie glow lit the room. She opened her fist and looked at her palm, the green glow seeming to brighten as she looked at it. The door to the dungeon suddenly slammed open, and a fuming woman stormed in through it, followed closely by another, her face mostly hidden by a purple hood. Kiera took the time to quickly analyze her situation: The angry woman stood tall before her - Kiera guessing that they were likely equal in height – her short black hair ruffled with her anger, and her pronounced facial scar making her look more intimidating in the dim glow of the dungeon. The other woman who had entered the room was shorter; her face mostly hidden beneath her hood, but her eyes sparkled intelligently from beneath it, seeming to already be planning something.

"Tell me why we shouldn't kill you now. The conclave is destroyed, everyone who attended is dead – except for you," the tall angry woman practically spat at Kiera.

The news that everyone at the conclave was dead... her friends from the circle, all the mages from all the other circles, even the Templars. Kiera wracked her brain in an attempt to remember what happened but she could not, only flashes of green light and fear presented themselves to her.

The woman grabbed her manacled wrist in response to her silence and uttered a harsh command, "Explain this."

"I... can't! I don't remember what happened at the conclave... the last thing that I remember was waiting for the entrance of Divine Justinia; I had gone to search for a bathroom. Then... nothing," Kiera forced herself to speak, desperately trying to untie the knotted mess that was her memories. This evoked an obviously emotional response from the woman; she made an angry noise and shook Kiera by the shoulders.

"You're lying! You must know!" she cried out, pulling back as if to punch Kiera before the other woman pulled her off.

"We need her Cassandra," The woman in purple implored her. So her name is Cassandra, Kiera thought, as in Seeker Cassandra? The Right Hand of the Divine?

"All those people at the conclave... All of them are dead?" Kiera muttered, almost to herself as the woman in purple rounded on her.

"Do you remember what happened? How this began?" the cloaked woman asked, crossing her arms over her chest and inspecting Kiera's reactions closely.

Kiera desperately clawed at the knots in her mind and finally one loosened and a fragment of memory rushed back into her mind, "I remember... running, something – many things – were chasing me... and then, a woman? She reached out to me, and then..." The memory ended there, providing Kiera with no more knowledge than she had begun with.

"Go to the forward camp, Leliana – I will take her to the rift," Cassandra spoke quietly to the other woman, and with that Leliana turned on her heel and left the dungeon. Cassandra released Kiera from her manacles and pulled her up from the ground, more gently than she'd expected. Her wrists were still bound by rope, but the absence of the manacles had her rubbing her wrists in relief. The older woman led her out of the dungeon and through what appeared to be a Chantry outside into a small town. Kiera almost fell to her knees when she saw it – the massive hole in the sky that glittered green and seemed to be raining boulders.

"We call it the Breach," Cassandra explained, seeing the shock on Kiera's features, "It's a massive rift into the world of demons that grows larger with each passing hour. It's not the only such rift, but it is the largest. All of them were caused by the explosion at the conclave, and unless we act the Breach may grow until it swallows the world."

As if on cue, a pulse of green light shot down from the tear in the sky, and a pain unlike any Kiera had felt ripped outward from her left hand. It felt as though someone had set fire to every single one of her nerves at once, as if she was going to be burnt alive from the inside out. She cried out and collapsed to the ground, all thought leaving her mind and being replaced by pain. In that moment she had become nothing except pain, consuming her and threatening to become her existence forever. As quickly as it began the pain vanished however, leaving Kiera a numb pile of groaning nerves lying in the dirt.

Cassandra kneeled in front of the mage and lifted her onto her knees, "Each time the Breach grows, your mark expands. And it is killing you. It may be the key to stopping all of this, but there isn't much time." The question was apparent in her gaze, though it seemed to Kiera that she did not have much choice.

"Will closing the Breach at least slow this thing's progression?" Kiera looked down at the hand that had caused her so much pain in so little time, "Do you even know anything about all of this?"

Cassandra's face turned contemplative for a short period of time, "We cannot know what will happen to you, but it is our – it is your only chance. If we do nothing the Breach will only grow larger and your mark will surely kill you."

Up the stairs in front of her Kiera heard commotion that indicated a fight, and she redoubled her pace in order to survey the combat sooner. When she crested the top step she saw a shimmering hole in the world, green like the breach, with demons walking out of it. In front of the breach there stood a single mage and what appeared to be a dwarven rogue, attempting to stem the steady flow of demons from the rift. Kiera ran toward the fight, slinging magic at the demons from a distance, hoping to draw their attention off the others. Cassandra was far more adept at drawing attention it seemed, roaring loudly before charging into the battle headfirst, claiming the attention of every demon in earshot. With the four of them fighting the battle was over quickly and Kiera ran up to the rift, contemplating the mark on her hand. The elven mage grabbed her wrist unexpectedly and shoved her palm toward the hole in the world, and suddenly Kiera felt the nerves in her hand turn to flame. A stream of green light emanated from her hand and connected with the rift, snapping it shut shortly. The mage released her hand and she attempted to shake the nerve pain from it, amazed that it had actually worked.

"What did you do?" Kiera looked at him incredulously, assuming he must have used some magic on her mark to get it to close that thing. He explained that he had theorized that since the same magic had opened the breach had placed the mark on her hand, and that the mark should be able to close the rifts. Kiera looked up at the giant tear in the sky and back at her hand, wondering if the attempt to close that monster was going to end in her getting killed after all.

"And here I thought we were going to be ass-deep in demons forever!" the dwarf chuckled from behind Kiera and she turned to face him, "Varric Thethras – rogue, storyteller and occasionally, unwanted tagalong." Kiera smiled at the bold dwarf and suppressed a grin when Cassandra made a disgruntled noise from behind her.

"My name is Solas; if there are to be introductions – I am pleased to see you still live. The mark on your hand seemed as though it might consume you before you had gotten a chance to use it," The elven mage spoke out, looking at Kiera's hand as if it might explode with energy at any moment.

"I am pleased to meet you both, thank you for your help, I only hope that I might make it out of this with my life intact," Kiera added the last statement with a chuckle, but only received somber looks from Solas and Cassandra in response.

"Enough introductions, we must move for the forward camp, we are meant to meet Leliana there. I only hope she made it through all this," Cassandra asserted, gesturing for the others to follow her.

 _ **Now is the Hour of our victory. Bring Forth the Sacrifice.**_ A deep, booming voice echoed around the ruins of the temple, bouncing off the mountain walls several times, repeating itself. Kiera felt a strange tingle in the back of her head, as if her mind was trying to tell her something. A shiver ran down the length of her spine.

"What are we hearing?!" Cassandra looked about her for the source of the voice, sword at the ready.

"At a guess: the person who created the Breach," Solas paused with his staff on the ground in front of him, looking up at the breach with a studied eye.

"Does that mean you don't think I did this?" Kiera spun on them, wide eyed, hoping this might then be enough proof that she did not create the massive hole in the sky.

"I don't think I ever believed you did this, but I cannot speak for Seeker Cassandra," Solas looked her up and down as if he were measuring her, debating with himself on his own statement.

"Well, even if she did do this, she's helping now. Let's get moving," Varric grumbled from behind the group, sidling past Kiera to take up the front of the line, but he didn't get far before stopping in his tracks and recoiling, "...You know this stuff is Red Lyrium, Seeker..."

"I see it, Varric," Cassandra snapped back at him, despite mirroring his concerned expression.

"But what's it _doing_ here?" He implored, keeping as far from the glowing red crystals as he could while still moving forward on the path.

"Magic could have drawn on Lyrium beneath the temple, corrupted it..." Solas theorized, though not sounding very confident.

"Ugh, it's evil. Whatever you do, don't touch it," Varric ordered, looking back at the rest of the party and indicating the side of the path that was opposite the crystals.

 _ **Keep the sacrifice still.**_ The tingle reappeared in Kiera's mind, stronger this time, and she outwardly shuddered. Solas gently placed a hand on her shoulder as if to steady her from falling over.

 _ **Someone, help me!**_ Another voice echoed around the crater, female this time, and clearly Orlesian in origin. Cassandra's spine stiffened noticeably when she heard the voice.

"That's Divine Justinia's voice!" Cassandra rushed down the steps ahead of them toward the main crater, and leapt down into the pit, sword at the ready. The rest of the party followed at a normal pace, more cautiously jumping down into the pit after her. As soon as her feet hit the floor of the temple, the mark in Kiera's hand flared open and the now-familiar pain shot through her arm and into her body. She would have fallen over if it was not for Solas' steadying hand on her shoulder once more.

 _ **Someone, Help me!**_ The Orlesian voice cried out once more, and in response, the party heard a familiar voice.

 _ **What's going on here?**_ Kiera's voice boomed around the crater, the tingle in the back of her mind amplifying to an almost stabbing pain as she heard her past words.

"That was your voice. Most Holy called out to you. But..." Cassandra gaped at Kiera, but was cut off when, with a burst of light, a sickeningly green-tinged vision appeared on the surface of the rift above them, and Kiera watched herself run into the room where the Divine was being held. She watched as the Divine was held by ghostly red energy surrounding her arms, an enormous dark figure with bright red eyes looming over her.

 _ **Run while you can, warn them!**_ The divine's now more feeble voice cried out to Kiera, and she held her head in her hands in an attempt to quell the pain in her mind.

 _ **We have an intruder. Kill her.**_ Kiera felt a flash of primal fear at the booming voice, and the vision disappeared from the face of the rift. Immediately, Cassandra was in Kiera's face, confusion and anger written plainly in her features.

"You were there! Who attacked? And the Divine, is she…? Was this vision true? What are we seeing?" The rapid-fire questions hit Kiera in a wave, and despite the pain in her mind lessening, she could not find answers to any of them.

"I don't remember! I try, and I can't!" Kiera snapped at Cassandra, the lingering pain in her head feeling like an oncoming migraine.

"Echoes of what happened here. The Fade bleeds into this place," Solas left her side and looked up at the rift, examining it, "This rift is not sealed, but it is closed… albeit temporarily. I believe with the mark, the rift can be opened and then sealed properly and safely. However, opening the rift will likely attract attention from the other side."

"That means Demons. Stand ready!" Cassandra shouted out orders at the soldiers surrounding the crater, and Kiera walked slowly towards the gigantic rift. She looked at her glowing hand, up at the rift, and then to Solas. He simply readied his staff and nodded at her, signifying that they were ready. Kiera lifted her palm to the sky, and concentrated on the green glow emanating from it, and the rift burst open. A gigantic demon stepped out of the rift toward her, and she nearly fell in her scramble backward to get away from it.

As soon as the monstrous demon appeared in the temple, and almost too quietly for her to hear, she heard Solas breathe, "Pride."


	3. Chapter 3

Kiera awoke slowly, taking in her surroundings as she did – the warm crackle of a fireplace nearby caught her attention and she realized she was in one of Haven's cabins.

 _Oh good, well at least I'm trusted enough to not be kept in the dungeons this time_ , Kiera thought.

She became tense however when she felt the presence of Lyrium growing closer to the cabin. _Great, some Templar has got it in their head that since I've helped with the breach they can finish this pesky mage off_ , she thought. As she felt the Lyrium presence grow closer her mana pooled defensively before she used the senses she had perfected to examine the Lyrium presence closer. It seemed weaker than that of a normal Templar, faded almost, as if it had been some time since their last Lyrium draught.

Suddenly she realized that she knew this Lyrium from somewhere, recognized the person whose veins it was flowing through – Commander Cullen. She felt him stop short at the door to her cabin and could almost see him holding up his hand to knock on her door when she called out to him.

"Well Commander, are you going to stand there all day or are you going to come inside?" She called out through the wooden walls.

The former Templar entered the cabin with a flush on his cheeks, as if he hadn't known whether he was going to enter before this point, "I had not yet knocked, Lady Trevelyan, how did you know I was there, let alone that it was me and not someone else?"

Kiera should have known her calling out to him would have raised this question, but when faced with it she did not know how to answer, how to explain the deep-seated fear of Templars that caused this. How she had trained herself every day since she had lost Desmond to be able to sense the Lyrium in their blood.

"I've had a strong distrust of Templars since..." Kiera trailed off, her sorrow threatening to surface. She cleared her throat and slowly continued, "...For a long while now. I've since trained my body to be able to sense Lyrium in Templar's veins."

Cullen looked at her with astonishment as well as what seemed like shame, lowering his head slightly as if he had personally created in her the fear of Templars. He opened his mouth to speak but thought better of it, creating an awkward silence between the two.

"The Lyrium in your veins feels different somehow than other Templars I've met... weaker almost. Has it been a while since your last draught?" Kiera asked awkwardly, rubbing her neck and wondering why he felt so different from other Templars. The commander only stuttered in response, seemingly lost for the correct words, so Kiera continued her train of thought, "Though I suppose it makes sense that it would have been a while since your last dose. After the events of the conclave I imagine both mages and Lyrium are in short supply, hence the time since your last dose."

The commander calmed at her answer to her own question, and seemed to remember that he had a purpose for being in Kiera's room. The awkwardness disappeared and his professionalism returned as he informed her, "I've been sent to see if you were awake and well, Herald – seeing as you are both, Seeker Cassandra requests your presence in the Haven Chantry as soon as possible, it seemed an urgent matter."

"And here I'd hoped you had just come for a friendly chat, maybe to bring me some food," Keira mumbled her thoughts out loud. She flushed crimson and moved to the desk across the room in order to avoid the Commander's confused look, "I will dress and report to the Chantry at once then Commander, thank you."

Kiera felt Cullen's eyes on her back as he nodded curtly and left the room, "I shall take my leave of you then, Lady Trevelyan."

Cursing her lack of conversation skills, Kiera searched the small chest in her room for her robes, finding them clean and dry along with her staff. _They must not want me wandering around Haven still covered in demon blood. A pity really, I must look very intimidating like that._ She donned her circle robes of blue and gold, and tied her long auburn hair into a braid down her back. She checked her reflection in a small mirror on the desk, only to be shocked to find that her eyes were no longer the slate-blue she had become accustomed to. Instead, nestled among the freckles that littered her face were eyes of such bright green that she was taken aback. They looked like the green of the Fade itself, and seemed almost to glow in the light of the torches on the wall. Looking down at the mark on her left hand, she could only wonder, _what else will this thing change about me before this is all over?_

Securing her simple staff to her back she mustered the courage to exit her cabin, expecting to find only a stray villager and possibly some soldiers. Instead, she was greeted by what must have been the entire population of the small village, held back only by two lines of soldiers on either side of the path. Kiera balked at the sight of what looked like a gauntlet, fearing every person behind those soldiers was holding a stone they wished to beat her with. Seeing none of them act in outright violence at the sight of her, Kiera slowly walked down the stone steps and onto the path to the Chantry. Fear made her walk slowly, ears pricked, listening for any sign of possible danger, but all she heard were hushed whispers.

"Look, it's her! It's the Herald of Andraste!"

"The Herald of Andraste is a mage?"

She rounded a corner to ascend more steps toward the Chantry, the sight of it comforting her in that she would not have to hear their whispers much longer.

"The Herald! She stopped the breach from getting any bigger!"

"I heard she was supposed to close it entirely. Still, it's more than anyone else has done."

At this comment Kiera suddenly turned her gaze skyward, fearing the worst - that what they said was true- and it was. The breach still remained in the sky, a swirling green nightmare. She had failed – of course she had, what else was she good at? Kiera's heart sank however, she had not expected this outcome- if the healer's notes strewn about her cabin were any indication, the effort had nearly killed her, and yet still she failed.

She finally pushed open the large wooden doors of the Chantry and escaped from the whispers of townspeople and Chantry members alike, grateful for the silence that was the main hall. As she drew nearer to the room at the back of the main hall, she heard raised voices, one of which she recognized as Seeker Cassandra, the other took her a moment but Kiera realized it was Chancellor Roderick. Kiera couldn't hear all of their conversation, but for what little time she lingered outside the door she heard Chancellor Roderick raving about how she was a "mage of all things" and how she must "Be held responsible for her actions at the conclave".

 _Good to know that man hasn't changed at all since we last met_ , Kiera thought, finally pushing open the door to the meeting room, greeted by the cease of all conversation and all eyes in the room turning to face her.

"Chain her! I want her prepared for travel to the capital for trial," Chancellor Roderick spoke quickly, pointing at her in reference to the Templars behind Kiera.

"Disregard that – and leave us," came the reply from Cassandra, who seemed to have already had enough of Chancellor Roderick's raving.

"You walk a dangerous line, Seeker," the Chancellor spoke, his tone almost threatening the Seeker.

"The breach is stable, but it is still a threat," Cassandra spoke with venom in her tone, "I will not ignore it."

As Kiera approached the war table, her anger rose within her and she nearly spat on Roderick's polished boots, "I did everything I could to close the breach. It nearly killed me, and yet you still think that I'm a suspect. What must I do to convince you of my innocence?"

"Yet, you live!" Chancellor Roderick exclaimed with clear disgust, "A convenient result, insofar as you're concerned."

Cassandra and Leliana both seemed to prickle at the attitude of the Chantry clergyman, Leliana approaching him and very thinly veiling a threat that he was also a suspect, among many others.

Roderick scoffed, "So the explosion at the conclave, that thing on her hand- am I to believe these are all coincidence?"

"Providence. The Maker sent her to us in our hour of need," Cassandra spoke boldly, not a shred of doubt in her claim of Kiera's holiness.

Kiera stood shocked at this claim, and that Cassandra clearly believed it so fervently. "You think I'm a chosen one? That the Maker would send a demon-ridden mage to save you all?" The confusion was apparent on Kiera's face, and Cassandra acknowledged it with a nod.

"The Maker works in ways I cannot begin to understand. If he has sent a mage to save us from this fate, then who are we to judge his chosen?" Cassandra spoke directly to Kiera this time, her faith apparent on her face.

"The Breach remains, and your mark is our only hope of closing it," Leliana spoke for the first time from a shadowy corner of the room, standing and walking up to the large table. Roderick sputtered angrily and his face reddened as he attempted to form a protest, but before he could, Cassandra slammed a large tome upon the table, emblazoned with a symbol Kiera had not seen before. It appeared to be a combination of the Seekers of Truth and the Templar order. A chill ran down her spine seeing the Templar sword, and she looked to Cassandra for an explanation of the outburst.

"You know what this is, Chancellor? A writ from the Divine, granting us the authority to act - as of this moment, I declare the Inquisition reborn," Cassandra advanced on Roderick, forcing him to back away from the table in the process.

"We will close the Breach, we will find those responsible, and we will restore order with or without your approval," she glowered down at the man, and he spun on his heel with an angry huff and left the room. Kiera watched him leave, amazed at Cassandra being uncooperative with the Chantry.

"You're defying the Chantry? Of all of the people... I never expected it from you two," Kiera was amazed, staring at the two women across from her, and gaining a modicum of new respect for the pair of them.

"Help us fix this before it's too late. We can do nothing without your mark, after all," Cassandra looked at her expectantly, hope and fear warring on her face.

"Well, this certainly isn't what I expected when I woke up this morning." A simple handshake, and the world changed.

* * *

Of course, the Inquisition did not form in a single moment, in that single handshake. Letters were sent, notices posted, supporters gathered. For a week, people streamed into Haven – craftsmen arrived, merchants set up shop, a blacksmith was established, and suddenly, Haven was a war-camp. Spiky wooden barricades were established around the outskirts, a small town of tents emblazoned with the image of the Templar order established itself, and Kiera's headache was only getting worse. There was a small group of mages already in the town from the conclave, and with them of course were Tranquil. Kiera tried to stay as far away from them as she could; they brought back... unpleasant memories.

 _His eyes fixed on hers through the dark of the room, burning with words unsaid. The glowing heat of the brand, screaming her name, wrenching against the restraints..._

Kiera did her best to keep her mind from wandering in her down time, always keeping herself occupied, training with the other mages, talking with Solas about his trips to the fade, or playing cards with Varric. Finally, after a week-long headache was finally getting to her, they left for the Hinterlands. The ride was uneventful, Varric telling stories about his adventures in Kirkwall, Solas regaling them with the history of the area. They arrived in the Hinterlands in late afternoon, the fall sun gleaming through the trees. The scouts at the main camp reported a recent increase in Templar-Mage violence, and just as they finished their report a yell echoed out from the valley below. More yells answered the first, and suddenly there was the clashing of steel on steel.

Kiera didn't think, didn't wait for an order, she ran. She heard something that sounded like Cassandra shouting an order behind her, but she was gone. More screams from below, and Kiera decided she wasn't running fast enough. She channeled magic into her legs, pushing herself faster down the steep hill toward the town. More shouts from behind her, louder now. Another scream from the village – high pitched - a child this time. Kiera burst forward from the valley she was in, nearly bowling over an inquisition archer who was drawing an arrow on a Templar. A blizzard appeared in the warm fall weather suddenly, enveloping the Templar soldiers in a whirlwind of sharp ice and biting winds. Another desperate yell – a man's this time- yanked Kiera's attention from the Templars. She dashed off to the center of the village, seeing a family being set upon by mages who were attacking from the east. Among the mages were sympathizers without magic, and she leapt in front of one's sword. Her wooden staff took the slash of the sword and she immediately threw him back with a wave of force. An ice rune she'd created suddenly burst, catching an enemy spell caster unawares, knocking him onto his back.

A brutally loud yell echoed from behind her, drawing the attention of the fighter she was locked in combat with. She used the distraction to her advantage, knocking the man down, and without thinking, she sunk the blade on her staff into his chest. A horrible _squish_ and a _gurgle_ \- blood poured from his chest. A strangled yell escaped his lips, and his face was frozen in fear then, permanently. Only when he stilled did Kiera realize what she'd done. A shudder shot up her spine, and Kiera suddenly felt sick. Blood pooled under the man she had struck down, and all she could do was stare. The family behind her had long since run for shelter and she was still standing over the fallen man, struggling to stand. Finally, she removed her staff from his chest, swiftly turning away as more blood spurted from the wound. Clutching her staff for support, Kiera moved toward her comrades.

 _Fell to the ground,_ squish _, and blood spurting from his chest. A strangled yell from his lips and fear written permanently into his features._ The scene replayed in her head over and over, and Kiera realized she would never forget his face. Brown hair cropped short, a cracked nose and piercingly blue eyes. Suddenly, she wondered what his name was.

"Herald, behind you!" An arrow zipped past her ear, and Kiera whirled toward the source – she was suddenly staring down Bianca.

"Varric what the hell-" Kiera cut off when she heard the _thump_ of a body falling behind her, and realized – not for the first time - that Varric Tethras had just saved her life. A deep yell announced another Templar presence behind her, and Kiera dashed away from the noise. She threw up a wall of ice between herself and the Templar, casting a rune on her side of the wall. The Templar hunched behind his shield and charged at the wall, smashing through a part of it to create a hole for the others behind him. As soon as he was through the wall, however, he was impaled by spikes of ice from the rune. The spikes retracted and Kiera swallowed – hard. Blood splashed out of the man and over the crystalline wall, staining it a bright crimson. Bile rose in her throat again and she gulped in air in an attempt to calm herself. Another arrow whizzed past her ear and dragged her out of her thoughts. A heavily armored Templar rushed her way as an archer leveled his bow in her direction – Kiera readied a spike of ice, ready to impale her attacker.

 _The glowing heat of the brand, Desmond's screams – the Templar suppressing her magic as she fell to her knees, unconscious._

Kiera felt her mana drain from her like the blood from the mage – quickly, she fell to her knees, the ice spike she'd readied shattering against the ground. A strangled cry escaped her – the Templar wasn't stopping. All of her mana had been drained from her, and now it felt as though he was taking the air from her very lungs. Wide eyed, she looked up at him, her mouth opening and closing as she was trying to speak. Her hands fell to her knees and she bent over, dry heaving as the Templar gloated over her. A sharp pain bloomed in her ribs, and Kiera would have screamed if she'd had any air left to use. Somewhere far off, she heard a furious yell that sounded something like her name, and the world went black.


End file.
